The reality of "food porn": Larger brain responses to food-related cues than to erotic images predict cue-induced eating.

Abstract

While some individuals can defy the lure of temptation, many others find appetizing food irresistible. Using event-related potentials, we showed that individuals who find food-related images more motivationally relevant than erotic ones (\"sign-trackers\") are more susceptible to cue-induced eating and, in the presence of a palatable food option, eat twice as much as individuals with the opposite brain reactivity profile (\"goal-trackers\"). These findings contribute to the understanding of the neurobiological basis of vulnerability to cue-induced behaviors.